by Dakota Krout
The O’Baba sat on her wooden chair, tapping a long claw on to the arm of it. “You know… I have a vested interest in ensuring that humans do not do too well. There is bad blood between us. Our King is slain, our people shattered, but… I do remember a time when my own people starved. If you think we are animalistic now… hmmm. I will help you, and here is why.”
She stood and walked over to Joe, looking him directly in the eyes as she approached. Her irises were a deep, swirling red, just as he knew that his eyes swirled with a lesser amount of blue and black—the signature of concentrated mana in a body. “Our people have a rule. Only family may touch another without causing pain. In this way, we train ourselves to become hardy, to ignore the pain. Do you know what happens when someone is in pain or fears pain… Human Joe?”
“They tend to lash out, swear to get revenge later, or collapse into a puddle?” Joe replied with a fair bit of humor, trying to diffuse the tense environment.
“This is true.” The powerful Shaman nodded. “So, as a small act of petty revenge… I am going to help you get what you want.”
“I don’t understand.” The humans all looked at each other and offered up shrugs.
“Nothing leads to weakness like a fat society who do not need to struggle to attain what they need. If I give you all the food you need, I may not need to do anything when the time comes for our ascendancy. Your own people will simply move out of our way. They will move out of fear of losing what they have for free. You might think on this, swearing you won’t use the ability you have, but when the first human starves to death in front of you… you’ll give in.” O’Baba turned away and sat in her chair again.
“Now. This is still information that is worth much. You will personally benefit and soar to great heights among your people. So, I need you to do something for us first.” O’Baba had returned to being a smiling, old crone, and looking at her now, Joe would never think that she was the one that had made him sweat bullets moments ago. “I need you to clear out a temple in the area. There is an infestation that I would rather not lose people to clear. You can always return, so it shouldn’t be that much of an issue.”
“Offering a… quest?” This was something that Joe could get behind. “Could I bypass this as amends for whoever it was that just attacked me?”
O’Baba returned with a chilly stare. “The compensation I am offering is to not have to reach ‘Friend’ status with The People before I ever offer you a quest personally. Is this not enough?”
“You make a good point.” Joe swallowed and tried not to smile. Showing his teeth seemed like a bad idea right now. “Let me guess, the temple is at the center of the forest, and we need to slay whatever is controlling all the imps and expanding the forest so much?”
“No.” O’Baba snorted. “You are barely able to survive at the edges of the forest, and even then only by attacking strays that are away from their packs. You want to go into a level thirty raid zone? That would require a much more… grand reward than simple growth houses. Certainly not something either of us are ready for.”
“Oh.”
“We will guide you to the northmost site, which is too close to us for comfort.” O’Baba gestured at a door next to them. “Go rest. You will need to be in the best shape possible to survive tomorrow.”
“Can we see the greenhouses before we agree to this quest?” Joe stopped her from dismissing them. “I know that you would not be offering something you don't have; I just want to see what it is that we are getting out of the arrangement.”
“Sleep now,” O’Baba ordered with a bite in her voice. “In the morning, we will venture to the production area, and you will find what you came looking for.”
Joe looked at his team, who were swaying on their feet. They needed sleep, and there was plenty of time to find answers when they had clear minds. Joe reluctantly agreed, and they were shown to a set of surprisingly comfortable, extra-large beds. “Well, at least this is really nice. You guys think I made the right call here?”
He looked around but found that his team was already asleep. An unnatural tugging pulled at him, and Joe succumbed to the embrace of Morpheus as well.
Chapter Twenty-five
“Awaken, humans.” Joe’s eyes snapped open, and he was perfectly awake. Awake like when a foghorn went off near your ear, without the pain or flinching.
“What did you do to us?” Poppy snarled as he launched out of bed. “How did you get around sending us to our spawn room when you knocked us out?”
The Wolfman that would be their guide for the remainder of the day snorted through his elongated snout and declined to answer. There was something shifty afoot, but they wouldn’t be finding out from this Scout. The Wolfman gestured for them to come along, and the confused and somewhat salty humans followed him. Joe scratched at his side, then Cleansed himself and his team. No need to remain salty when he was a walking shower.
“I bring. You see. You take quest.” The Scout didn't seem to have the same linguistic range as the others that the group had interacted with, but after a moment, he was having a conversation with Jaxon in the Wolfman tongue as they walked.
“What happened while we were all doing our own thing?” Joe asked the others, getting nods of understanding as they watched Jaxon lash out and pound on the Wolfman for ten seconds. Then again strangely, the Wolfman stood tall and handed over a bag of something. Jaxon looked inside, nodded, and the walk continued. “Jaxon, what is…”
“Cured ham.”
Joe had no words, but luckily, they arrived at their destination only a moment later. The only way that he knew they were there was the glass sparkling in the sun. The building itself was clear glass, and Joe could see that the place was stuffed with greenery. They walked into the building, and it was like going from having a stuffed nose to being able to smell everything. The Scout with them started sneezing and even had to cover his snout after a short while. The air was potent with flavor and rich aromas. Joe’s stomach growled, and he wasn't alone. From what they could see, there was enough food to feed dozens of people for weeks, and this was just the entrance of the building.
“Is greenhouse. Many functions. You see? Good.” The Scout waved them backward, and they were forced out of the building. “To The O’Baba.”
Passing through the door again seemed to pull away all the scents that they had been marinating in only moments ago. It must be a function of the building, and Joe was itching to make a blueprint and create his own version. He had only been able to see a small area in the greenhouse, but it seemed to be massive on a scale that he was having trouble understanding. Such a huge building shouldn’t be able to exist in hiding, but then again… it hadn't seemed that huge from the outside. Perhaps there were some tricks to it like the spatial magic of the Mage’s college? That was the only thing that Joe could think of. Was this another Artifact building? Higher? Would he even be able to build it elsewhere even if he had the blueprint?
His thoughts were tumultuous as he walked, and he was on full autopilot mode until they arrived back to O’Baba. She saw his faraway gaze and nodded. “You have questions. I have a few answers. Not too many until you complete my task. Then you may ask about the building as much as you like.”
“Fair enough.” Joe took a steadying breath and looked her in the eye. “Does that building use spatial magic? What tier is it?”
“Yes, it is larger than it should be. It is classified as a ‘Special Unique’.” O’Baba showed teeth. “You wonder why the ranking is so low for such a potent building, I can see. The high cost to create it, and the… downsides that come with the building lower the perceived value. Not everything can be the best in the world, Architect of Artifacts.”
Joe flinched but decided that it was foolish of him to think that the current leader of a nation wouldn't have a way to look at his titles at the very least. “Well, that’s good. I don't have the resources I’d need to make a bunch of Artifacts or better. Can you tell me more about the greenhouse?
”
“No, I don’t think I will,” came the disappointing answer. “Just know that there are downsides, large issues with the building, that reduce the rarity to where it is. You’ll get your food, but you are still going to need to devote yourself or others to securing the food. Let’s talk about the need The People have.”
“Please.” Joe looked to his team, getting affirmative responses from them as well. They all knew how this ‘game’ worked. Nothing for free, but rewards were enforced to a scary degree.
“There is an infestation of humans in a temple near us.” O’Baba waited for a reaction, and her eyes twinkled approvingly as Joe said nothing. “To be fair, they are not like you and yours. They are… wrong. Broken. Their minds are in a different way, but they are dangerous, in a way that you will simply need to learn for yourself. Telling you, well. Just observe them for a short while before you decide to charge in. You’ll see.”
“Do we only have one chance at this? If we die, it could be that we never find our way back to you,” Poppy stated the obvious, and O’Baba’s ears flattened.
A hulking Warrior stepped forward threateningly. “Silence! You have not earned the right to speak in the O’Baba’s presence!”
“Where I come from, we do not conform to a caste system. I have every right to talk to anyone I care to.” Poppy’s words were as pointed as his rapier. “Joe alone does not speak for all of us. He is leader by virtue of his position, but he has made it clear that he wants and values our input. Understand that our cultures differ greatly.”
“Your mother differs greatly.” The Warrior snarled at him, but the O’Baba made a whistling sound; the Warrior reluctantly stepped back.
O’Baba looked at Poppy with her ears remaining flat. “Swordsman, did you not just tell him to understand that our cultures differ? Perhaps you should look into your own actions before telling another to take heed of your own. Let me tell you something, swordsman. I smell youngling on you. You have a child, yes?”
Poppy reached for the hilt of his weapon. “If you even try to threaten my family, I will hunt you all to extinction no matter how long it takes.”
O’Baba once more whistled down the bristling guards. “As you can see, we are rather on edge here. Your attitude is not conducive to good relations. Tell me, swordsman, do you know why we have come to this terrible place, this forest full of death and gloom? The last respite for our people? Do you know what it means to become a shattered race? I think only your Jaxon has seen the true danger of becoming as such.”
Joe had no idea what to do to calm the mounting tensions. He looked around at the group helplessly, his gaze eventually landing on Jaxon. The Chiropractor seemed confused and stepped forward to say as much. “Hello! I do enjoy being included, but I have to admit that I have no idea what’s going on. What do you mean?”
“Jaxon, you met me for the first time as someone was hunting us in a forest. Did you not wonder why I, the greatest Shaman of The People, was scurrying away instead of standing to decimate the attacking humans?” O’Baba stared at the stressed face Jaxon was pulling and tilted her head to the side. “Do you remember how you found us?”
“Of course!” Jaxon brightened instantly. “I heard someone running away from me, so I skipped after them to see what was the matter! It was just one of your pups, so I tried to leave, but you got attacked.”
“Correct, Jaxon.” The O’Baba turned to Poppy with hard eyes. “As you put it so threateningly, a Shattered race can go extinct. Have you seen other children out and about? No? Just the protected area? It sure is hard to make a race go extinct when the children are safe, don't you think?”
Poppy paled as he made the connection that O’Baba was drawing for him. “Now, you see. I was taking our future to this location, to a place so dangerous that the armies of your Kingdom cannot easily find us. Forgive us, that we are on edge around a group that has a vested interest in slaying or enslaving us. Perhaps you prove to us that you are a good people instead of hurling insults and threats because you were forced to get a good night’s rest?”
Poppy hung his head in shame, nodding slightly to show that he had understood the issue. O’Baba looked back to Joe. “Now. Let’s get back to the quest.”
Quest alert! The Cult of the Burning Mind. The O’Baba has told you of an area that is too dangerous to leave alone. An infestation of ‘not right’ humans have taken control of a place of power in the Forest of Chlorophyll Chaos and are expanding their influence in the area. Defeat them, ensure they cannot challenge the Wolfmen, and you shall have your reward. Reward: +1,000 reputation with The People. +10,000 experience. Blueprint for ‘Evergrowth Greenhouse’. Failure: The place of power remains in control of the Cult for two weeks. -1,000 reputation with The People. Lose chance at gaining blueprint. Caution! Minimum recommendation for this quest is level 25! Accept? Yes/ No
“Yikes.” Joe shared the information with his team, and all of them paled as he had. This was a quest designed for people ten levels above Joe. Not all of them were even level fifteen yet, and frankly, this was outside of their range. They shook their heads, and Joe turned to O’Baba to refuse the quest as politely as possible.
“I will gift you a beacon that will allow you to get here consistently whenever you enter the forest,” O’Baba spoke before Joe could. “I will tell you right now, refusing the quest is the same as failing it in my eyes. You will not be allowed to return here peacefully.”
Joe bit his words off and reluctantly accepted the quest. O’Baba nodded once and gestured at the door. “Show them the path, as many times as it is needed. Bring them here when they want to return. Show them the respect we would give those on a quest to join The People. Good luck, team of Joe. I know I ask too much, but this is what is needed.”
Chapter Twenty-six
An odd sight graced the forest that morning. Two Wolfman Scouts slowly and carefully picked their way through the forest, and a few feet behind them trailed a party of their racial enemy, humans. Now, no one was around to see this odd sight, and the Scouts went out of their way to make sure that remained the case. The enemies here were far too powerful for two standard Scouts, but they used their enhanced senses to great effect in avoiding conflict and choosing the best path forward.
As The O’Baba had mentioned, the place of power was nearby. After only an hour of creeping through the woods, huge, gray, stone walls appeared between the trees. If they had been walking at a normal pace in a straight line, it would have likely only taken fifteen minutes or so to arrive. The walls themselves seemed to be pulsing with a faint light, and just as the group arrived, they found why this place was considered so dangerous. The Scouts brought them to a tree, and after carefully ensuring that the tree wasn't an Ent, the group was helped up to an overwatch position.
“This is a cathedral!” Joe’s voice was almost too loud, and in an instant, a poisoned arrow was at this throat. He wasn't overly concerned, as he had maximized his Exquisite Shell, but he was somewhat embarrassed over his outburst and quieted down. The wait stretched, ten minutes. Fifteen. Thirty. Then the front doors swung open, and a formation of people marched out. They were all humming the same tune, and it was catchy. Joe, still embarrassed over his previous outburst, stopped himself just before joining in but noted with horror that everyone else including the Scouts were humming along at a much lower decibel.
“Guys! Stop it!” Joe demanded, taking their attention and getting glared at. Then they noticed that they were humming, and Joe was pretty sure they tried to stop. But they didn’t.
The walls of the building flashed more brightly, and a roar from the forest directly challenged the light and music show. The understory began to wave as a creature moved toward the formation of maybe two hundred people, and the humming began to reach a crescendo. A Rosebeast burst from the leafy ferns that coated the ground, and after a moment to orient itself, it charged directly at the huge group of unarmed people.
Joe wasn’t sure what he was expecting, but it wa
sn’t the Rosebeast tearing the group apart with ease. The level twenty-ish beast hit the second ranks of the formation with a spray of blood… which came from the first ranks. Then the people piled on the Rosebeast, all of them still smiling and humming. Alexis nudged Joe and whispered, “Average level of those people is five. I don't see anyone above seven.”
“What in the abyss?” Joe looked back at the fight, the slaughter, just as the Rosebeast shook itself and sent a wave of thorns flying from the vines that encircled its body. Another dozen humans fell to the thorns and poison, but the wave of bodies started to cover the Rosebeast, punching, kicking, and biting between smiles. The two hundred were reduced to one hundred. Fifty. Twenty. Five. Two. Then the Rosebeast finally fell, the last of its roses torn away.
The two remaining humans began to glow with golden light, hyper leveling from the experience of killing such a powerful creature and only splitting it between two people. Joe had no doubt that they gained bonuses, skill levels, and all sorts of goodies for fighting barehanded and unarmored. The two people stood, resumed humming, and returned to the cathedral.
As much as Joe wanted to discuss what he had just seen with his group, he knew that they were currently here to learn about the fighters and the challenges that they would need to face. The doors swung open, and a few people stood waiting for the returning fighters. From what Joe could see, the open area was full of people. He had no idea how so many low-leveled people had gotten here, but he had a sinking suspicion that just perhaps some of them had thought they were going off to become farmers.
“Intrusive Scan,” Joe muttered when he saw a musclebound, glowing figure welcoming back the survivors. He held the contact for three second before the figure became aware of his scan and slammed the doors to block the hostile, intrusive information gathering. That was fine with Joe, as the information he had already gained was enough to make him wince.
Brayden_W, Hierophant of the Burning Mind.
